


Born-again Louis

by Róisín (Winchester1989)



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Age Regression/De-Aging, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Baby Louis, But I'm no doctor, But it becomes consensual, Chubby Louis Tomlinson, Cuddles, Daddy Harry, Diapers, Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Infantilism, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, Medical Procedures, Non-Consensual Body Modification, Pacifiers, Sassy Louis, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Touch-Starved, little louis
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-25
Updated: 2018-11-26
Packaged: 2019-06-16 03:40:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15428244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winchester1989/pseuds/R%C3%B3is%C3%ADn
Summary: He wastiny.He waschubby.He was wearing adiaperand they put him in abloody onesie. His little fat feet were covered by Spiderman socks and he couldn't for the life of him remember when, but they gave him a littlehatwhich was secured by a little bow under his chin and he was just...He was just very disgruntled.Louis managed to cross his thick little arms and manage a scowl, but it only made the tall stranger with the dark curly hair smile fonder. "Can't believe you're mine, poppet."If he hadn't been perched up on this stranger's hips at about a hundred miles above the ground (or so it seemed), he would've wiggled and ran, crawled or scooted, anywhere to get away from this 'Daddy Harry'.  Nobody should mess with the Tommo, even if they did give the best cuddles.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This has no beta (don't want one either, sorry), so excuse any faults (English is not my native language)  
> I post chapters as I write :)  
> I'm not a doctor and of course de-aging doesn't exist in real life. But hey, makes for a fluffy story :)

Fuck was it cold. Louis was shivering, trying his best to gather some warmth from the flimsy jacket he’d nicked off a drunk bloke a few hours back. It was the middle of winter in Doncaster, and although it wasn’t freezing, the rain was pelting down hard and unforgiving.

Huddled up in a corner in a back alley somewhere, Louis tried to keep his teeth from chattering. It had only been a couple of days since he’d come back from Uni, home-sick and stressed, a massive debt on his name to top it off. What he needed was his mum, but she had passed away years ago. Mark ran the family now, and he didn’t want Louis there. It was said without remorse, one-on-one, his sisters nowhere to be seen. Mark didn’t want him back, wouldn’t try to help him figure out a way to pay off his debt, wouldn’t take him in. Louis quickly understood the only reason Mark had ever tolerated him back then was because his mum had ordered him to. She was gone now though, no longer able to fight his battles for him.

Louis had always been a mummy’s boy; he missed her terribly. The thought of staying at his childhood home in Doncaster was something he couldn’t bear, which was why he went off to Uni. That’s where he went off the rails; getting in to pub fights and drinking too much beer, lending money from so called friends and even trying his hand at harder addictive substances. It had taken all he had to pull away and sneak onto buses and trains without paying, making it to Doncaster in under a few days.

Now here he was; cold, tired, underfed and dehydrated, rain coming down on him, making his head sting. The thought of getting beaten up sounded more appealing and if he had the strength, he would’ve laughed at that thought.

Keeping himself as small as possible, he didn’t notice the man looking at him from just a few feet away. The man stood there, staring, hands deep in the pockets of his raincoat, head tilted as he considered Louis. After a few moments, the man took out a phone and tapped on the screen, before typing something. The phone was soon put back in the pocket and the man looked at Louis once again, the young lad still a shivering mess. Turning on his heel, the man walked away silently, Louis none the wiser.

 

~*~

A week. A week he’d been here, and things hadn’t gotten better. He’d managed to nick some food and water from the garbage bins at the local McDonalds, but it was cold and disgusting, the half-filled bottles of water nearly frozen from the cold weather. One of the employees, a kind boy with an Irish accent, had seen him yesterday and offered something warm. Louis hated the look of pity he’d gotten, but couldn’t say no to a warm Big Mac. The burger was eaten, or shall we say devoured, within minutes.

Louis hadn’t noticed a figure following him, tracking his every move. Hadn’t even noticed that the figure had kept him safe one night when a man with bad intentions walked into ‘Louis’” alley. The young boy had been huddled up as usual and when the figure had noticed an older man trying to sneak up to the young boy, he was quickly stabbed in the neck with a tranquilizer and carried off to another alley, only to wake up cold and disorientated the next morning, with no memory of the night before.

This particular night was the coldest one yet. The boy who worked at McDonalds, _‘Name’s Niall, I’ll have somethin’ warm for ya every day if ya come by!’_ had given him a warm winter jacket. Louis hadn’t been too stupid as to say no, so he tried to bury himself in the faux-fur lining before getting in a semi-comfortable position to fall asleep. Who said bricks weren’t comfortable?

Looking at his fingers, only illuminated by the lamp-post at the beginning of the alley, he noticed they were quite dark. That couldn’t be good. He hadn’t felt his feet in days; didn’t dare to take off his Toms and look, afraid he wouldn’t be able to get back into them if he took them off.

Huddled up next to a garbage bin, he closed his eyes, trying to stop tears from falling. This was the lowest he’d ever felt, depressed, hopeless, scared and angry. Fear was the most prominent feeling, filling him up from head to toe. He knew he wouldn’t be able to get a job, not with the way he was looking and feeling, too weak to even walk or stand. He should’ve immediately done something after Mark had cut him off, but he’d been too distressed and frazzled to think about that at that moment.

“Louis?”

God he was so pathetic. Maybe, if he could sleep, he could dream about his mum. Her cuddles, her laughter, the way she made his crumpets. How every Sunday she’d make a Full English with extra scrambled eggs and sausage just for Louis.

“Louis can you wake up for me?”

Feeling his eyes get heavy, he thought about what it would feel like to have a warm bath with bubbles. Maybe even some toys, though he was too old to be playing with them.

“He’s out.”

“Do you still want to tranquilize him, Sir?”

“Yes, might be best.”

He couldn’t feel his body anymore, numb from the cold. He was too tired to open his eyes, even as something touched his neck. It was just a little sting, but the warmth that flooded from his neck to the rest of his body felt good. His limbs had already been heavy, his body succumbing to the hypothermia, but now they wouldn’t even move if he tried. Giving in to the darkness and the promise of having breakfast with his mum, Louis floated away.

~*~

“In the car, Zayn?”

Zayn nodded as he watched his husband, Liam, pick the boy up. Louis was as limp as a ragdoll, his blue hands dangling down as Liam hoisted him up. Both men quickly walked to the parked car, Liam getting in the back with Louis on his lap. The drive to the nearest facility was only half an hour, so they expected to be on time. They knew they were coming, appointment set about a week ago. One of Liam’s friends, Niall, had been keeping tabs on Louis as well, so the boy had been fully monitored for a week. Louis fit all the descriptions and would make a perfect born-again baby for any one of their clients, although Zayn and Liam already knew who they were going to gift Louis to.

They’d been doing this for several years; keeping tabs on homeless youth or teens with a troubled background (though mostly it was a combination of the two), making sure they’d fit the bill to be re-born and then take them in. The facility took care of the physical aspect, de-aging them. They didn’t know the exact way it was done or even if it hurt; though the babies and/or toddlers never complained about pain during transitioning. Usually it took around two to three days for the body to get to its tiny size, but the Littles were kept asleep during most of it.

The process in itself was fascinating; body hair fell out, usually only leaving a light fuzz or a few locks of hair left on the head, baby-fat returned to cheeks and arms and legs, tummies and bottoms. There was no way to tell a ‘normal’ baby from one that was a Little, which was the whole point. The only thing that was different was the memories; Littles would know of their life before turning, which sometimes resulted in sad Littles, already knowing things such as grief or how unfair the world could be. There was no innocence of youth, but there was a chance to grow up again, make different choices, getting on the right path. Parents of Littles were nothing like the parents the Little’s had in their old life, which also made all the difference. They were loved, cuddled, hugged, encouraged and _safe_.

Driving through the open gates of the facility, Zayn looked in his rear-view mirror.

“How’s he doing?”

Liam sighed, pulling Louis closer. “Warming up. But he need to get inside quick.”

Zayn nodded and parked the car, opening the door for Liam moments after. Louis was carried inside, where a member of the facility had a gurney ready. Liam and Zayn were allowed to go in for the first examination, needing to provide a bit of background about the client they’d brought in.

Once in the examination room, one of their main doctors walked in. Zayn and Liam knew him well.

“Who do we have here?”

Liam grabbed the manila folder from Zayn’s hands and told Dr. Grimshaw about their client.

“His name is Louis Tomlinson, age 19. Mother passed away a few years ago, stepfather denied him access back home after traveling back to Doncaster from London. Has been on the street for about a week. Many younger siblings, all of which still too young to be in a position to help, though we’ve established they didn’t know he was back home. Acquaintances from college confirmed he has a major debt due to substance abuse, although he is clean at the moment. Is single and unbound, a perfect candidate for being a born-again Little.”

Dr. Grimshaw raised his eyebrows as he felt how cold Louis’ hands still were. “Why didn’t you bring him in sooner? Hypothermia can cause serious damage, and I don’t even want to imagine what his feet look like.” He said, as he looked at the feet, bare in some raggedy old Toms.

“He’ll be fine,” Zayn said calmly. “This was the right moment, any time before and we would’ve had a little fighter on our hands. We needed him to succumb, and he did.”

Grimshaw sighed and, with the help of an assistant, began undressing the boy. Liam’s mouth went wide when he saw how skinny Louis actually was, ribs countable and belly shallow. His arms were as thin as sticks, wrists so thin he could have both in one of his hands and still have room left.

The boy’s sharp features were even more pronounced because of the weight loss, cheekbones prominent.

After pulling off the boy’s shoes, pants and boxers, they were glad to see no scars littering Louis’ body. The boy was rolled over to check his back and it was clean too, which relieved all of them. The only thing that concerned them were his feet; Dr. Grimshaw made a note and told the two men Louis would probably lose a toe.  As one of the assistants rolled in a bed, Liam scooped the naked boy up and laid him down under the covers, making sure he was tucked in nice and snug before being wheeled off to God knows where.

A hand on his shoulder jerked him out of his thoughts as Dr. Grimshaw ordered Louis to be taken away, getting prepped for his change.

“He’ll be fine. We’ll pick him up in three days.” Zayn said, pulling Liam into a hug. Though they’d done this many times before, it sometimes still shocked them (though, mostly Liam) when they saw the state their clients were in.

~*~

Louis was feeling… a bit out of place. He was warm, which was a plus, and quite cozy, although he couldn’t really define why. He had space though; plenty of space. His clothes felt a bit too loose but they were very comfortable. He opened his eyes, rubbing them with his fists when he couldn’t get a clear image. Still, the image remained fuzzy. Sitting up, he startled when he heard someone speak.

“It’ll be like that for a while, just until you’re completely little. Everything is still shrinking at this point,” a low voice said to him. Jerking around, Louis managed to focus on a hazy figure in a white lab-coat, sitting on what seemed to be a table, flicking his legs back and forth.

“Wha’?” he managed to croak out, not understanding what the man was telling him.  


“Your vision. It’s fuzzy. Don’t worry; you won’t need glasses. As soon as your body is aged down, you’ll see again.”

Louis looked at his own body, holding out his hands in front of him. There was something very _wrong_ , but he couldn’t pinpoint what it was. Plus, he had the feeling he didn’t really want to know. His hands looked… rounder. Softer, almost, more pink, definitely smaller, though in combination with the rest of his body, totally in proportion. His nails had been cut short it seemed, and when he went to look at his toes, he saw they were covered in Spiderman socks. His feet were small… as in, _tiny_. As in, those were children’s socks, as they had the size written on the bottom.

He also felt more ‘softer’ in general, noticing his legs had chubbed up just a little bit, and he prodded a finger at them, chuckling when the pudge bounced back. He immediately looked at the man in the white lab coat, hoping he didn’t hear Louis’ small laugh, because he knew he wasn’t supposed to be happy about any of this.

Something had obviously been done to his body, without his consent. They’d taken him somewhere and changed his clothes, all without his permission, and by the looks of it bathed him, waxed him (?), although his skin wasn’t sore. They’d also done something right though; he wasn’t hungry, he wasn’t cold or in any kind of pain. The most surprising thing was that he wasn’t craving any kind of drugs or alcohol.  He felt surprisingly good, a bit fuzzy in the upstairs department but nothing too alarming. As he turned he felt something tug in his crotch area, but he didn’t pay it much mind for now.

He plunked back down on the bed, turning his head so he could look at the man who was still sitting there, writing something down. “Hmm?” he managed to say, or mumble.

The man looked up. “You can call me Nick, but I doubt you’re able to speak anymore. Vocal abilities are usually the first to go, but you’ll learn to talk again with your new Daddy.”

At this, Louis’ eyes widened. He was definitely _not_ going to go back to Mark, he would fight tooth and nail for that not to happen. Letting out a small whine, he huffed as he realized he couldn’t even say the word ‘no’.

Nick chuckled. “You won’t be going back to your stepfather. You’ll get a new Daddy, who you’ll get to see in a couple of days, yeah?”

Louis didn’t really know what to do with this information, the physical feeling of being okay not weighing up to his mental discomfort anymore. Yes, they probably saved his life, and he knew there was such a thing as born-again babies, but he certainly never expected to become one. Tears started to gather in his eyes and once the first one fell, a huge head ache presented itself.

“I’m sorry Louis, but you need to stay calm in order to have a painless transition.”

Nick hovered over his bed and tried to put a hand on Louis’ small shoulder, but the boy wouldn’t have it. He tried to smack Nick’s hand away but felt even more frustrated when he realized he’d lost a lot of muscle strength.

The older man put a small mask over his mouth, something strawberry scented. Louis tried to struggle, but his tiny body was no match for the adult man and his flailing didn’t help. If anything, the ragged breaths he was taking only made the sedative work quicker, and it wasn’t long until the tiny limbs stopped fighting and laid still on the bed, Louis’ breathing evening out, eyes finally fluttering closed.

“I’m sorry little one, I really am.” Nick said, as he turned the knob down, now only giving Louis as much sedative as was needed to keep him asleep. Rearranging the tiny boy’s body, he took off the Spiderman socks to examine the boy’s small feet. The de-aging cured a lot of things, but didn’t save Louis’ left little toe. Blood circulation to the boy’s feet had been severely compromised due to the cold and the skin had started to rot due to being in wet shoes all the time. The boy had probably had a small wound, which had started to fester and grow. The little toe had been the worst off, and they’d had to amputate. His feet were healing properly though, and Nick was glad because he quite liked the feisty little lad. Carefully putting the socks back onto the limp feet one by one, he also put another pair of fuzzy socks on top, stimulating more blood flow.

Seeing as the boy would soon reach the baby-stages, Nick pulled down the simple white briefs, before getting a diaper. They’d put a catheter in every client as soon as they arrived, lest they wet themselves. Louis was small enough to fit in diapers now and could easily be changed seeing as he'd become so small. Of course, the urethra channel had also been shrinking, and it wouldn’t be long until the catheter tube would’ve been too big for the boy’s small genitals.

After taking the necessary hygienic precautions, he deflated the small balloon inside of Louis and was able to pull the catheter out in one fluid motion.  He cleaned the area and after powdering, the diaper was secured and the white briefs were put on top. He knew that diaper changes were the part the born-again Littles hated most, but it was something that came with any re-aging. The Littles would need to be potty trained all over again. Nick found it best to put their Littles in diapers when they were still out for the count, because they’d either cry from humiliation or get very angry. Nick didn’t like fusses, so he’d happily let the first conscious diaper change be done by the new parents.

Nick knew it would only take about another day or so until Louis was a full-on baby. He’d leave Louis now, only to come back in the morning, knowing he would find the boy in the same clothes but way too big for him.

He’d talked to Zayn and Liam about Louis, and they told him this was the Little they wanted to give to Harry. They’ve all known Harry for ages, knew how lonely he was, how ready he was for a child. Harry never objected to having a born-again Little, stating he would love to give someone a 'new chance in life’. After taking care of Louis one-on-one these last few days (every doctor had one assigned Little they went through the entire process with) he knew Zayn and Liam had made the right choice in choosing Louis. The boy hadn’t seemed to mind his regression all that much, or had at least seemed to appreciate them taking away his physical pains.

He hoped the little boy would be the perfect Little for Harry, and at this point it did seem so.

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

Harry was nervous. He was going to meet his baby today. He’d read all about him already, the file Zayn and Liam had given him read thoroughly, now left behind in his office at home. The nursery had been finished ages ago; ready for a born-again Little. To say Harry was anxious about finally meeting Louis was an understatement. He was terrified, but also determined not to show it to his little man. Dr. Grimshaw had explained that Louis would still be sleepy or groggy from the sedatives, plus the physical change drained a lot of energy; he would be sleeping quite a lot for the next few days, even more so than was normal for a baby his physical age.

The nursery was set, the kitchen was stocked, a rocking chair now graced the back porch as well as one in the living room. There was a play pen for Louis to wiggle about in, lots of toys and stuffed animals ready to be used; Harry was nothing if not prepared.

Going through the house once more Harry made sure everything was set and ready for him to take his new son home; all he had to do now was wait for Zayn and Liam to arrive, as they were accompanying him to the facility.

 

~*~

“Hello Mr. Styles, good to see you today! Are you all excited and ready?”

Harry nodded. “Excited, yes, ready… well we’ll have to wait and see, won’t we?”

Dr. Grimshaw (‘please, call me Nick’) led the way to his office, as some things needed to be signed before he was given his little.

“Right, so this is proof of guardianship. This also states that you have taken care of all debts in Louis’ previous life and that you take full responsibility of Louis until he reaches the physical age of twenty-one again.”

“Twenty-one? I thought it was eighteen?” Harry asked, not that he minded; if all went well Louis would remain his son forever.

“Eighteen would be sufficient, but we have found that born-again littles tend to be more dependent, even at a later age. It is in their own best interest to have a steady home base for a longer amount of time.”

“I understand. Where do I sign?” Harry said, clicking the back of the pen. Nick gave him the papers and after reading through them, Harry signed on the dotted lines.

“Right, if you’ll follow me.”

Following Nick out of the office, Zayn and Liam stood up when Harry and Nick got into the waiting room. Walking down a long corridor, there was a light blue door at the left, Nick stopping in front of it.

“He’s still a bit sleepy, definitely grumpy. But, the transition was a success and he’s as small as he’s going to get, though he does have some baby fat. We’ve arranged a bag for you with some of his items and a few things to get you going once you take him home.”

Feeling his heartbeat quicken, Harry was just hoping Nick was done with his little speech; he just wanted to see his boy.

“Are you ready?”

Harry nodded frantically, ignoring Zayn’s chuckling behind him. “Go on Nick, let the poor boy in. Hasn’t got all day,” Liam said.

Nick laughed as he opened the door for Harry, who went in as soon as he saw the crib.

Walking over, he peered over the edge. His heart almost stopped, because in it was the most adorable little lad he’d ever seen.

There was little Louis; a tiny baby boy with chubby legs, chubby arms and a little round face. He was clad in a diaper, but did rock some awesome tiny Spiderman socks. He was laying on his back, legs splayed out to the sides, showing the little rolls of fat on his baby pink skin. His head was tilted to the side and his arms were stretched out above him, totally relaxed and comfortable. There was a standard light blue pacifier tucked into his mouth which bobbed up and down gently with Louis’ suckling. The tiny thing was letting out the softest little snuffles and whimpers, sighing in between deep and even breaths.

Harry reached out and put his pinky finger in Louis’ left hand, mesmerized when the little lad instinctively  grabbed on tightly. Harry hadn’t even noticed Nick standing next to him until he spoke.

“Want to get him dressed so you can take him home?”

Speechless, Harry could only nod as he noticed Nick pulling down a changing table that had been mounted to the wall. Turning back to his (his!) baby, Harry tried to gently remove his finger from Louis’ death grip. After successfully doing so, he splayed out both hands and went to pick the baby up, only now noticing the difference. Harry’s hands had always been big but right now he was afraid he was going to _crush_ Louis before he’d even taken him home; his hands were _massive_ in comparison to the tiny lad’s new body.

With one of his hands under Louis’ bum and the other at the baby’s neck, Harry gingerly scooped him up, ignoring Zayn and Liam who were cooing at him. He knew they were just teasing, but this was a special moment.

Louis didn’t wake, but Harry hadn’t expected that either, knowing the boy must be exhausted from the transition.

Laying him down on the changing table, Harry was already sad to let him go; it felt right having Louis safely tucked against him; safe from harm, nice and snug in Harry’s hold.

 

Being as gentle as possible, Harry felt the diaper to check if it was dry. It was, so he got out the clothes he packed for his son. The facility had given him Louis’ clothes size and he hoped the items would fit.

The onesie was easy, as it had some buttons at the collar so Louis’ head would fit through. The buttons at the bottom were snapped in place quickly. Getting Louis in his dark blue little leggings was easily done, each little thick leg fitting into the stretchy material without problem. Next came his vest, which was white with dark blue stripes, and a little boat embroidered on a miniscule chest pocket. It was the most adorable thing he’d seen at the shop and he knew that was going to be Louis’ first outfit. Lastly, Harry got out a small little hat, which was secured by a little string so it wouldn’t come off as easily. Outside was still cold and windy and Harry didn’t want his boy to catch a cold, seeing as his immune system was still very weak. The hat looked adorable and made Louis’ round little cheeks even more pronounced, melting Harry’s heart even further.

~*~

Harry left the facility with a bag full of pamphlets, Louis’ medication, an appointment card for his monthly check-ups and of course, his baby boy Louis. The lad was still fast asleep, now transferred to the carrier so Harry could buckle him up in the car.

Zayn and Liam said their goodbyes to Harry and went on their way, after Zayn helped Harry with the car seat. Harry knew he’d get the hang of it soon enough, but for now he figured he’d just leave the maxi cosi in the car so he wouldn’t have to unbuckle it.

The rear view mirror was directed at Louis, and Harry could tell the boy was exhausted. There were dark circles under Louis’ eyes and his breathing had remained even and deep even though he’d been jostled quite a bit, especially when Harry had been fiddling with the seat belt. Zayn had assured him this was normal and that Louis would need a couple of days before he was fully recovered. If Harry made sure Louis got his bottles, all would be fine, seeing as they had all the fluids and nutrients Louis needed.

As Harry pulled into the driveway, he smiled as he saw three blue balloons wrapped to the handle of his front door with a big cardboard box next to them. Leave it to Zayn and Liam to surprise him again.

Harry quickly got all his stuff  and the present inside, keeping an eye on his car (and thus, Louis) as much as possible. As soon as everything was inside, he went over and unbuckled Louis, who remained asleep, head lolled sideways and pacifier precariously dangling from his lips; one more nudge and it would fall out. Taking the pacifier, he put it in his pocket before gingerly lifting Louis out, being careful to support his entire body, knowing his muscles were underdeveloped and floppy at best. His big hands were a blessing, able to support Louis’ entire torso as he lifted the small body towards his chest. Louis snuffled a bit before resting his face against the crook of Harry’s neck, then let out a sigh and smacked his lips before relaxing into sleep once more.

Harry was trembling, standing there on his driveway, almost in tears with how precious this moment felt. It was just him and Louis; them against the world. Harry vowed to always keep this boy safe from any harm, promising silently that he would always be there for him no matter what.

~*~

Damn, Louis was comfortable. He felt all snug and cozy and he’d be bonkers if he’d say he wasn’t liking it. He _loved_ it. The smell was amazing too; some kind of cologne? Whatever it was it smelled _good_ ; there was a hint of laundry detergent mixed in somewhere too, the smell kind of reminding him of his mum. Louis rubbed his face all over whatever it was; it was soft and… tickly? Were those hairs?

Letting out a small huff, he startled when whatever it was gave out a low rumbling laugh.

“Silly boy, what are you doing to Daddy, huh?”

Louis gave out a small yelp which turned into a high shriek as suddenly the thing went upwards, taking him along with it. The change in altitude was a quick one and Louis tried to grab on for dear life, his fists squeezing into anything they could grab on to.

Eyes scrunched tight, Louis didn’t dare open them until he knew they wouldn’t move again. His mind was still rather fuzzy; he knew he was a baby now, but didn’t know any details. He figured he was still at the facility and Nick was messing about with him, but this didn’t sound like Nick. This person had a deeper voice and smelled different. Also, Nick never referred to himself as ‘ _Daddy’_.

A hand patted his bum softly and at that Louis opened his eyes. People were not allowed to just grope his arse, thank you very much. Looking up he glared at the face so close to him, scowling as the hand that patted his bottom now rested on his lower back.

“Hello poppet. No need to look so angry, huh?”

Louis had tons of things he wanted to say to this man, the first one being ‘put me down’, but all that came out was a high pitched garble and oh boy were they serious?! He couldn’t talk anymore?! At this realization Louis got even more mad, wiggling and squirming so the big hands would release him. If this man was a proper Daddy he’d let Louis wallow in his misery and leave him alone. Well, no that's not true, but it was what Louis wanted right now.

Unfortunately, the big hands didn’t let go; all that happened was another cuddle, as Louis’ head was gently guided to the man’s chest. Now Louis felt even _more_ frustrated. He didn’t want to be cuddled or coddled, he wanted to be left alone and if he was guessing correctly, he couldn’t even hold his own head up for too long and that… well just wouldn’t _do_.

Anger turned into desperation and soon Louis felt his lower lip wobbling; his breath hitching and indeed, not even three seconds later, the waterworks started. If this man wanted a baby, he could sure as hell get one, Louis figured, wailing to his heart’s content as he let out all his frustrations, not caring one bit that the gentle giant who was holding him tried to comfort him, mumbling sweet words of comfort and safety.

He tried, without success, to ram his little fists against the chest in front of him, and when that didn’t work he started kicking his short legs, frustrated when that too, failed. His cries turned into gulps, trying to get in some air, but he felt he was panicking. He was angry, dammit, and he had every right to be upset. They took him, they changed him, they expected him to not put up too much of a fight. Well, they hadn’t met the Tommo yet, had they? Louis could be a mean one when he wanted to, just you wait and see. The fact he was now the size of an infant should have no influence on that, Louis figured, ignoring the man’s frantic attempts to calm him down, seeing as Louis was getting mad and scared and upset so much he started to turn blue.

Something was unceremoniously put into his mouth and Louis gulped, trying to spit the sodding thing out, because he couldn’t breathe dammit, why wouldn’t they listen?! It was pushed back immediately and was forcing Louis to breathe in deeply through his nose, and as he did so, he found the thing in his mouth to be surprisingly comforting; it’s shape fitted perfectly and was a heavy weight on his tongue. He began to suck on it, instinctively, trying to stop doing so when he was aware of it, but it was hard; the suckling motion gave him such a feeling of peace, of calm, and to be honest, his ears had stopped hurting seeing as he wasn’t hearing his own screams anymore. The deep, even breaths through his nose managed to get enough oxygen back to him and he felt relieved, finally being able to breathe again.

Blinking to get the last of his tears away, he became more aware of the world around him, still hiccupping and sniffling and whimpering, but content, now that this suckly thing was in his mouth and those large hands were cupping his bum and neck. Wait…, what? His bum?!

Squirming a bit, Louis managed to turn his head, getting away from the soft skin and now resting on a shoulder, facing away from the man who was holding him.

“Shhh poppet… I know, I know… just got a tad upset, eh?”

A tad? A _tad_?!

Louis started whimpering once more and that’s when the magic happened. The man gently bounced him up and down and _oh_ … that felt _good_. That actually felt really good. The fingers in his neck were giving him a little massage and it made him all fuzzy. Combining that with the suckly thing and dear Lord he was in Heaven…

“There you go, that’s my little Louis…” the deep voice stated and Louis would huff and puff at being called ‘little’, but he knew he was drawing the short stick here so he decided to let it go. You know, not because he was all comfortable and snug and warm and… well you get the gist. There would be plenty of time for Louis’ retaliation later, he supposed. It could wait an hour. Or two.

The man (and what was his name?! Louis sure as hell wasn’t going to call him _Daddy_ ) started walking and Louis scrunched his eyes shut, not wanting to see how high he was and thus how far he would fall when this gangly limbed individual would inevitably trip over something in this cluttered _mess_ of a house. After a few seconds they sat down and Louis was pleased to sense a rocking motion, which was quite calming and helped tremendously in calming him down further.

As Louis was lulled into a slumber, he felt a sense of surrender. Not much, just a little bit, but it was there. He knew the transition, and just being a baby in general, would mean he’d need lots of sleep and if it was always going to be this comfortable, then… well let’s just say Louis wouldn’t complain. The stranger smelled good and was quite nice to lean against, surely a nap would do no harm?

It seemed the man had different plans though, because apparently as soon as Louis had calmed down enough, he was carried somewhere else. Why couldn’t he just get some rest?!

“After a change, we'll give you a bottle and then you can have a nice little nap, okay poppet?”

What was with the poppet? Louis was nobody’s poppet, most definitely not this man’s. He was Louis, and that was all they should call him. Just Louis. To emphasize this Louis scowled and kicked his legs out again, frustrated when it seemed he couldn’t get them to kick in a certain direction, only being able to pull his legs up a bit and then stomp them back down mid-air. It must’ve been a pathetic sight.

Louis let out a little sigh and then absolutely did not give out a little shriek as he was placed on what seemed to be an edged pillow. Louis also definitely didn’t whimper as the stranger took one of his monstrous hands and easily took both Louis’ legs between his fingers, lifting him up so even his bum was off the table. This was bloody embarrassing. Louis’ eyes widened as the leggings (he had on leggings?!) were easily pulled off and his onesie (a ONESIE?!) was unsnapped.

If Louis’ figured correctly then something _else_ might be about to happen and if there was one thing he didn’t want it w- OH GOD THERE IT WAS IT’S A DIAPER AND THOSE MOOSE HANDS ARE TAKING IT OFF AND NOW MY DANGLY BITS ARE OUT IN THE OPEN AND WHY IS THAT SO COLD WOULD YOU GET. OFF. ME. YOU BLOODY WANK-

“Now now poppet no need to be so upset! Daddy’s just changing you, you made a bit of a mess in your sleep didn’t you?”

WILL YOU STOP IT WITH THE POPPET I AM LAYING HERE WITH MY BUM FOR ALL OUT TO SEE AND HOW DARE YOU SAY IT’S NO BIG DEAL AND WHAT’S THAT POWDERY STUFF **ABORT MISSION I REPEAT ABORT MISSION** -

“Shhh Louis… calm down love, almost finished…”

YOU BETTER BE ALMOST FINISHED THE TOMMO DOES NOT CONSENT TO THIS TORTURE HOW DARE YOU YOU BIG OLD OAF I’LL BITE OFF YOUR FINGERS SEE IF I CARE YOU FUCKING GIRAFFE-

“There we go… all better now isn’t it?” The man cooed and Louis. Was. Livid.

His face was red, scrunched up, the pacifier spat out and now laying somewhere on the floor, his lungs were at maximum capacity as Louis was screaming his head off, appalled by this sudden onslaught on his nether bits, no matter how good it felt to be clean and taped up again. This man just wiped his bum and Louis wasn’t having that, no Sir, and he vowed to himself that next time the Tommo would be prepared and ready to fight. He balled up his tiny fists and his little body was as stiff as a board when he was picked up again.

Revenge would be very, very sweet. He’d come up with a  cunning plan to get rid of this Daddy person and until that plan went into action, he wasn’t going to be cooperative at all.

Scowling, Louis turned his face so he was practically smushed against the stranger’s neck. It was most definitely not because the stranger felt so comforting and safe. Nope, not at all. It also wasn’t because he was tired, or shall we say exhausted, from the crying and the change of environment and just being short on energy in general.

As the stranger sat on the couch, Louis noticed he had something in his hands. It was a bloody bottle but he never even liked milk and especially not warm, so obviously Louis started up a protest once again. Letting out a small whine he wiggled until he was a bit more on top of the shoulder instead of against it. It had no effect though, as the arm that was under his bum was suddenly gone and he felt himself fall down a couple of inches, yelping as he thought he was going to take a tumble.

The arm was back quickly though, and it guided Louis down into a more comfortable position, turning him around in the stranger’s hold.

“Hello poppet. I have something for you. Won’t you open up for Daddy Harry?”

Harry. His name was Harry. Louis was disappointed it wasn’t something more suitable like Giraffe, but he guessed he could work with a common name like Harry.

Louis glared at Harry, trying to convey his displeasure with the general way things were going, but it didn’t have much effect. He felt something prod at his lips and as he moved them to try and get that thing away from his mouth, it was pushed in and Louis was fighting his instincts telling him to suck on it. You see, it had the same shape as the suckly thing and well, although Louis didn’t have much experience with it, he knew he liked how the suckly thing had made him feel. He was actually pretty sad he’d spat the thing out during the Event That Must Not Be Named, but alas, it was gone, probably to never be seen again. What a shame.

A drop of whatever was inside the bottle was on his tongue now and this did not taste like warm, disgusting milk. It was actually pretty good and had a bit of a banana flavor.

“D’you like it? I love bananas, so when I saw they had banana flavor I just knew I had to get some for my poppet.” Harry said and Louis didn’t respond, too busy suckling down the sweet milkshake-like banana goodness he was presented with. His tummy began feeling warm and full after a while and he felt his eyelids grow heavy. He figured he could keep drinking without looking anywhere, especially if it meant not having to see the fond look on Harry’s face because honestly, Louis didn’t deserve to be looked at like that. He wasn’t worth love and affection _but_ he could damn well drink the banana stuff if it was offered anyway.

It didn’t take long for Louis to completely surrender to sleep and so he didn’t notice it when Harry pulled the half empty bottle out, pulling him against him for a little burp and sat with him, just to cuddle for a while. Louis was fast asleep for all of it, but for Harry it was bonding time; this sweet smelling little hurricane of a boy, who was obviously fighting his new environment; although Harry could see little spots of acceptation here and there. He knew it probably wasn’t going to go smoothly, but he was willing to fight for it.

 

 


	3. Chapter 3

Suckly things. Damn all the suckly things. Damn the bottles, damn the dummies, damn the upturned pinkies. It seemed whenever he was upset, something was put in his mouth, and _damn_ his oral fixation because it would be a proper distraction every single time.

Harry knew exactly when to plop the damn things in. Louis was a tad upset? _Here’s the dummy_. Louis felt personally violated while Harry was using his mammoth hands to clean his bum? _Here’s the dummy._ Louis was wailing after yet another diaper change? _Go on son, have a bottle_.

Sometimes Louis would wake up with Harry’s pinkie in his mouth and he was sucking on it. SUCKING on it. Like, damn, he knew his baby instincts would be prominent but he hadn’t expected to go right back to shutting up whenever Harry made him.

It wasn’t that Harry wasn’t nice; if anything Louis had never encountered a sweeter soul in his life, which made it all the more difficult to stay mad at him. He knew Harry wasn’t the one who made the decision to de-age him to his baby years, and he knew he should be thankful for having someone like Harry to take care of him now. But it still didn’t sit right; Louis still fought it every single day, and it was wearing the both of them down.

Louis might be a little lad now; a little lad with a missing toe nonetheless, but still, that didn’t mean he was going to surrender to the situation. But maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t going to _actively_ fight it anymore.

What if he just got boring? What if he just went pliant, and docile, and give Harry nothing interesting? He figured Harry would lose interest soon; surely, if the little babe doesn’t scream or fight or heck, even laugh, he’ll probably get bored of him and who knows, maybe he’ll bring Louis back to the facility. Maybe that ‘Nick’  could turn him right back to his adult self.

It was worth a try. He didn’t want this. He didn’t want to be a baby. He didn’t deserve those cuddles, those sweet words and all that attention. He _didn’t_.

~*~

Harry dreaded going into the nursery. The last few weeks had been nothing but a struggle, and the silent hope he’d had about Louis adjusting to his new life within a few weeks, was gone. Louis made it a fight, a personal vendetta, screaming and squirming at every opportunity, didn’t matter who was holding him. Harry obviously got the brunt of it, but even Zayn and Liam had undergone the ‘Tommo terror’, which had made Harry feel awful. Awful because his baby was distressed to the point he made himself sick, and because he was ashamed, and felt as if Liam and Zayn were judging him for not handling Louis any better.

“He just needs some time to adjust, Harry. Thinking it would just be a couple of weeks was… optimistic. Just give it some more time, okay?” Liam had said to him afterwards, making Harry feel at least a little bit better. Still, he didn’t want to think back on it too much.

Every interaction started with a small fight as far as Louis was concerned. Always disgruntled, always moody, only laughing when he saw something fun on the telly or if Harry was being clumsy. The night-terrors were the worst; Louis always had nightmares, and wouldn’t calm down until Harry had spent hours with him, holding him, bouncing him up and down. It frustrated Harry to no end that Louis couldn’t talk anymore; couldn’t tell Harry what exactly it was that was frightening him. Harry always repeated the same words to him, always swearing that Louis was safe here, that he wouldn’t be alone, cold, or hungry ever again. Louis seemed to calm down at that but as soon as he’d try and put the babe back in his crib the screaming would start all over again.

No screaming today though. Taking a deep breath, Harry opened the door to the nursery, curious to see what he would find. It was odd; usually Louis would start the day by yelling his little lungs out, balling up his fat little fists and screaming bloody murder as Harry would change a poopy diaper. Louis could kick his short legs like a pro; wiggling and squirming about, trying to fight Harry every step of the way.

Not today though; today Louis was quiet.

Oh, he was awake alright. He was staring at Harry as the man walked closer; blinking slowly and turning his head to the other side as Harry gingerly picked him up.

“Not making a fuss today?” Harry asked softly, trying not to set Louis off.

He needn’t have bothered; Louis didn’t respond, just let out a small sigh as he was put down on the changing mat. Harry frowned; most of the time Louis would already be crying. Maybe the boy was ill?

Harry put the back of his hand on Louis’ forehead, but the boy didn’t feel feverish.

Sighing, he calmly unsnapped Louis’ onesie and proceeded to take off the diaper, cleaning Louis up. Louis wasn’t looking at him, just staring at the ceiling, letting his little legs fall to the side and not showing any of his normal attitude.

Harry felt awkward during the whole thing and knew something was wrong. _But what?_

Getting out the thermometer he noticed Louis eyeing the thing with a small glare; but the boy didn’t do anything but wince just a little as Harry pushed it in his bum. When it beeped, Harry pulled it out; Louis’ temperature was _normal_. Then why was the boy so still? Why wasn’t he fighting? If this were any other occasion, his screaming should’ve alerted the National Guard as soon as the thermometer had gone in; yet the boy had remained quiet.

Louis was as limp as a ragdoll while Harry dressed him; letting Harry maneuver him in any which way necessary to get him into his clothes, doing absolutely nothing to help. It was unsettling, and Harry didn’t like it one bit.

After getting Louis in his little outfit, he took the baby downstairs where he had a bottle ready, taking it with him to the living room. He sat down on the sofa, Louis safely in the crook of his arm. Guiding the nipple to the baby’s mouth, Louis latched on easily and drank almost all of it, before just letting the nipple stay in his mouth, but not suckling on it. Harry pulled it out, then guided Louis up to burp him. A small one came, and Louis let out a little sigh afterwards.

Harry tried, that morning. He tried the toys (usually Louis would swat them away as soon as he’d have his chubby little fists close enough), but Louis didn’t even lift a finger. He tried mashed carrots (usually eaten with gusto) but the baby didn’t even open his mouth.

He was stuck; couldn’t for the life of him figure out what was wrong. Is this what being a father was? Always second guessing yourself, always afraid someone was going to get hurt?

Picking Louis up, he cradled the baby to his chest, pleased to realize that Louis wasn’t entirely gone; his small little round cheek rubbed against his left pec before a small fist grabbed tightly to the fabric of his shirt. Louis did a little wiggle (his bum against Harry’s broad palm) then settled down; apparently content to have a nap right on Harry.

A small smile graced Harry’s face. It appeared not all was lost. He’d have to come up with a plan. A _delicious_ plan.

 

~*~

Hmmm. Custard.

Better yet. Custard with whipped cream.

Top it off with one of those vanilla cinnamon milk concoctions Dad- _Harry_ makes. Hmm.

Louis could almost feel himself drooling as he was thinking about the food yet again. He wouldn’t lie; he hadn’t been so well fed in ages, and really, why wouldn’t he enjoy eating?

Judging by the fat rolls on his tummy and legs, he was a thick little lad. No dieting was going to help there. Also; Harry _loved_ to feed him. Who was he to deny that? And besides; the leggings Harry dressed him in were stretchy, and soft, and comfortable. He was always dressed for comfort whilst looking cute at the same time. Then again, it wasn’t hard looking cute when you had a cherubic face like Louis did now.

Anyway; back to the custard. Louis sniffed from where he was having tummy time; he could see Daddy- no, _Harry_ -‘s legs in the kitchen, and he guessed it was time for a treat soon.

Louis loved custard. Harry knew this. But if Harry thought he’d win Louis over by treating him with custard, he had another thing coming. Louis couldn’t be _bought_. Pff, the mere notion of it alone! You can’t just bribe someone with custard!

Babbling around his pacifier, Louis squirmed around until he could reach the little Elmo that was laying nearby. He knew he shouldn’t; he should be still and pliant and make Harry desperate; but it had been _three days_ and Louis was going slightly mad. Staying so calm the entire time was boring. Louis was a spit-fire at heart, so this stuff wasn’t easy you know.

Elmo wouldn’t tell a soul; and besides, Louis needed a friend. Elmo just happened to be there. Also; if you smashed your fist on his tummy Elmo would say something and Louis considered that really cool in his book. He was still an adult, he still remembered. It’s just… Elmo was alone too, so why not stick together?

Louis had Elmo by the leg when Harry came in with a big bowl of what was probably custard, and he smiled as he saw Louis. Louis looked away, knowing he was caught red-handed.

He turned back to look at Harry when he heard the chair scraping over the floor; how come Daddy hadn’t picked him up? He watched as Harry took a spoon and stirred the bowl, he could see the steam rising. Was that bastard having warm custard? Without him?!  


Louis’ stare turned to a glare as Harry ate a spoon full of custard. He’d honestly thought Harry was going to try and bribe him with the yellow gold but no sir – Daddy was eating without him! How dare he!

He kept looking as Daddy kept eating and he thought he saw Harry smirking a little bit, but he couldn’t be sure.

Louis had been leaning on his elbows, head up to look at Harry, but this was just too much. He wanted custard too…

Pouting, Louis lowered his head, his arms now stretched out in front of him, his little body entirely stretched out on the play mat. He didn’t want to look at the traitor who was eating his favorite thing without him.

“’s the matter Boo Bear? You tired?”

Louis whined. He wasn’t tired. He was mad. He wanted custard and to stop being called bloody ‘boo bear’. Surely Daddy could tell.

“No, not tired?”

Louis gave a little grunt as he lifted his head, glaring at Harry before looking away again.

“I’m getting quite full now. Think I’ll throw this away then…”

Louis almost snapped his neck as he looked up, to see Daddy smirking. The baby let out a small huff and let it be followed with a whine; he needed Harry to know he wasn’t happy with the situation.

“You thought you were going to get custard, didn’t you?” Daddy said with a smirk.

“You can have some custard, you know.”

Louis waited for the punchline.

“If you give me a little cuddle.”

That two-timing son of a &~*!&@. _Bribery._ Louis was being fucking _bribed_.

He respected that. All is fair in love and war, and such.

Turning to look at his Daddy, he considered his options. He could ignore him, like he’d done these last few days, or he could get back to his spit-fire ways _and_ get custard. All in all, his choice was made before all options were even considered.

Louis rolled over on his back, lifting his arms. Sure he’d give a cuddle, but he wasn’t wiggling his way over to Daddy by himself. No Sir.

Louis swore he’d never seen Harry move so fast, a grin a mile wide on his face, gathering Louis up in his huge hands. He had to blink a few times as Harry had swooped him up to his height within just a second, but as soon as he did he found his face smushed against Daddy’s neck, the smell of Daddy’s shampoo in his nose.

Cuddles with Daddy (and when did he really start calling him Daddy?) were actually really comfortable, and it was more than a fair trade for a couple of spoons of custard.

 “See, I knew you were in there. Please don’t disappear like that again.”

~*~

It worked. The custard worked. Wide eyed, Harry stared at the bowl, giving out a small chuckle when Louis was apparently done with the hug. The baby was promised custard, and the baby didn’t forget.

Turning Louis around in his hold, he got a bit of custard on the spoon and guided it to the little man’s mouth. Louis eagerly took his first bite and gave a huge grin when Harry put some more on the spoon. It didn’t take long before Louis was full on wiggling on Harry’s lap; his little fat bum going from side to side whenever the spoon was presented to him, his chubby arms flailing about as he got even more excited. Harry’s palm was as huge as Louis’ tummy, and was doing a good job of keeping the baby up right; his round little tum all warm and soft, and Harry didn’t really want this moment to end.

It seemed neither did Louis; when the bowl was empty the boy simply let out a content little sigh and shuffled back, then leaned his head against Harry’s chest, smacking his lips for good measure before nuzzling Harry’s shirt. Harry could weep with how endeared he was in this moment; Louis totally unguarded and vulnerable, all  small, soft and pliant and sleepy in his Daddy’s arms, just a _tiny thing_ that he needed to _protect_ , and that needed to be _loved._

He wondered how long it would actually take for Louis to totally give in to his new life. His mum and sister were coming by tomorrow and Harry couldn’t wait to introduce them to Louis. He hadn’t seen his family in a bit because all were busy, and Louis needed to get used to Harry alone first, but now the time had finally come. Louis didn’t know yet, but Harry was convinced they’d all get along great.

 

 

 

 


End file.
